Patentable/Patents/US-10640871
US-10640871

Heat treatment system, heat treatment method, and program

PublishedMay 5, 2020
Assigneenot available in USPTO data we have
Inventorsnot available in USPTO data we have
Technical Abstract

A heat treatment system includes a heating unit that heats an inside of a processing chamber in which a plurality of workpieces are accommodated; a heat treatment condition storing unit that stores a heat treatment condition; a heat treatment change model storing unit that stores a heat treatment change model; a heat treatment performing unit that performs the heat treatment condition; a heat treatment result receiving unit that receives a result of heat treatment performed; and an optimum temperature calculating unit that calculate a target heat treatment result for an in-plane shape of the workpiece based on a target heat treatment result and information about a shape of the target heat treatment result, and calculate an optimum temperature that results in the target heat treatment result, based on the calculated target heat treatment result and the heat treatment change model.

Patent Claims
10 claims

Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.

1

1. A heat treatment system comprising: a heater configured to heat an inside of a processing chamber in which a workpiece is accommodated; and a controller that performs an overall control of the heat treatment system, wherein the controller is configured to: store a recipe according to heat treatment content, including a temperature in the processing chamber heated by the heater; store a heat treatment change model that represents a relationship between a change of a temperature in the processing chamber and a corresponding change in film thickness resulting from the change of the temperature; calculate a film thickness by converting inputted target information with respect to an in-plane shape of a film to be formed on the workpiece, prior to forming the film on the workpiece and prior to receiving a measured film thickness; form the film on the workpiece by reading the stored recipe; receive the measured film thickness of the film formed on the workpiece; and calculate an optimum temperature that results in the inputted target information, based on the stored heat treatment change model when the measured film thickness does not fall within an allowable range relative to the inputted target information.

2

2. The heat treatment system of claim 1 , wherein the processing chamber is divided into a plurality of zones, each including at least a workpiece, the heater is configured to set a temperature for each of the zones in the processing chamber, the controller is further configured to: store a recipe for each of the zones in the processing chamber; store a heat treatment change model that represents a relationship between a change of a temperature in the processing chamber for each of the zones and a change of a corresponding film thickness resulting from the change of the temperature for each of the zones; calculate a film thickness for each zone by converting inputted target information with respect to an in-plane shape of a film to be formed on the workpiece for each zone; and calculate an optimum temperature for each of the zones that results in the inputted target information based on the stored heat treatment change model when measured thicknesses do not fall within an allowable range relative to the inputted target information for each zone.

3

3. The heat treatment system of claim 1 , wherein the heat treatment content is a film formation processing.

4

4. The heat treatment system of claim 3 , wherein the inputted target information with respect to the in-plane shape of the film to be formed on the workpiece includes a thickness of a center of the film to be formed on the workpiece and a thickness of an edge of the film to be formed on the workpiece.

5

5. The heat treatment system of claim 3 , wherein the inputted target information with respect to the in-plane shape of the film to be formed on the workpiece includes a thickness of the film to be formed on the workpiece, a shape of the film to be formed on the workpiece, and an in-plane uniformity of the film to be formed on the workpiece.

6

6. The heat treatment system of claim 3 , wherein the inputted target information with respect to the in-plane shape of the film to be formed on the workpiece includes a thickness of the film to be formed on the workpiece, a shape of the film to be formed on the workpiece, and an in-plane range of the film to be formed on the workpiece.

7

7. The heat treatment system of claim 5 , wherein the shape of the film includes a convex, a concave, or a flat shape.

8

8. The heat treatment system of claim 6 , wherein the shape of the film includes a convex, a concave, or a flat shape.

9

9. A heat treatment method by using the heat treatment system of claim 1 .

10

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores a program which, when executed, causes a computer to control the heat treatment method of claim 5 .

Classification Codes (CPC)

Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.

Patent Metadata

Filing Date

February 22, 2016

Publication Date

May 5, 2020

Want to explore more patents?

Browse 5M+ US patents with plain-English claim translations and AI-generated analysis.

Citation & reuse

Analysis on this page is generated by Patentable — an AI-powered patent intelligence platform. AI-generated summaries, explanations, and analysis may be reused with attribution and a visible link back to the canonical URL below. Patent abstracts and claims are USPTO public domain.

Cite as: Patentable. “Heat treatment system, heat treatment method, and program” (US-10640871). https://patentable.app/patents/US-10640871

© 2026 Patentable. All rights reserved.

Patentable is a research and drafting-assistant tool, not a law firm, and does not provide legal advice. Documents we generate are drafts for review by a licensed patent attorney.